Crane Army Ammunition Activity Hosts JMC Commanding General

1 / 2Show Caption +Hide Caption –Brig. Gen. Richard Dix, commanding general of the Joint Munitions Command, is briefed by a Crane Army employee during his tour of the machine shop on CAAA's operations and missions toward supporting the Joint Warfighter. Dix also toured the pyrotechnic facility during his visit to get a firsthand look at Crane Army's missions, capabilities, and workforce structure. (Photo Credit: 1st Lt. Marshall Z Howell (AMC))VIEW ORIGINAL2 / 2Show Caption +Hide Caption –Brig. Gen. Richard Dix, commanding general of Joint Munitions Command, greets Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter as he lands at Naval Support Activity, Crane for a historic visit on June 22. This was both Dix and Carter's first time visiting NSA, Crane Division. (Photo Credit: 1st Lt. Marshall Z Howell (AMC))VIEW ORIGINAL

CRANE, Ind. -- Brig. Gen. Richard Dix, commanding general of Joint Munitions Command, traveled to southern Indiana to take part in Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter's visit to Naval Support Activity, Crane.

Crane Army presented Dix with an overview of the base's operations and missions toward supporting the Warfighter prior to the arrival of the Secretary of Defense. Dix also had an opportunity to tour the pyrotechnic facility and machine shop during his visit.

"Following the tour of the pyrotechnics building and hearing about CAAA's continuous improvement initiatives, I came away impressed with Crane Army's commitment to performing efficiently, effectively and at best value," Dix said. "Crane Army understands that by developing their workforce, improving their facilities and placing safety before everything else, they will be able to provide the best value for the Department of Defense. Having that commitment to providing quality in the ammunition we supply to the Warfighter is what ensures that the Organic Industrial Base remains the National Security Insurance Policy."

Col. James Hooper and Deputy to the Commander Norman Thomas reviewed CAAA's command structure, missions, capabilities, and workforce composition with Dix and discussed how CAAA is posturing to be increasingly competitive in the future.

"While Brig. Gen. Dix's first visit to Crane was on very short notice and the primary intent was to participate in Secretary Carter's visit to Crane, we were able to spend a very valuable two hours orienting our new commanding general on Crane Army's mission," Hooper said. "Brig. Gen. Dix was able to see the impact that our employees have every day by providing our Joint Warfighters the munitions they need -- munitions delivered to the right place at the right time, that function the right way, the first time, every time."

Dix's visit to CAAA displayed his support for the entire base and its operations. "Yesterday was a great chance to introduce Brig. Gen. Dix to the unique capabilities of CAAA and give him a firsthand glimpse of what we do to support the Joint Warfighter," Lara Zilafro, CAAA's commodity manager of pyrotechnics, said.

Established October 1977, Crane Army Ammunition Activity maintains ordnance professionals and infrastructure in order to receive, store, ship, produce, renovate and demilitarize conventional ammunition, missiles and related components. Crane Army maintains up to one third of the DoD's conventional ammunition inventory. The Activity also provides command oversight of Iowa Army Ammunition Plant, Letterkenny Munitions Center, Pennsylvania, and Milan Army Ammunition Plant, Tennessee.